Read the Bible

¹ And the queen of Sheba had heard of Solomon's fame. And she came to test Solomon with sharp questions at Jerusalem, with a very great train, and camels bearing spices, and gold in abundance,and precious stones. And she came in toSolomon and spoke with him all that was in her heart.² And Solomon told her all her matters; and there was nothing hidden from Solomon that he did not declare to her.³ And the queen of Sheba saw the wisdom of Solomon, and the house that he had built,⁴ and the food of his table, and the sitting of his servants, and the standing of his ministers, and their clothing, and his cupbearers, and their clothing, and his burnt offerings that he offered upin the house of Jehovah; and there was no morespirit in her.⁵ And she said to the king, The word that I heard in my land concerning your matters and concerning your wisdom is true.⁶ But I had given no credence to their words, until I had come and my eyes had seen. And, behold, there was not declared to me half of the greatness of your wisdom. You exceeded the report that I heard.⁷ Oh the happiness of your men, and the happiness of your servants, these who stand before you continually and hear your wisdom!⁸ May Jehovah your God be blessed, who has delighted in you, to put you on His throne to be king for Jehovah your God. In the love of your God toward Israel, to make it stand forever,He has put you over them as king, to do judgmentand righteousness.⁹ And she gave to the king a hundred and twenty talents of gold, and spices in great plenty, and precious stones. And there has not been any spice as that which the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.¹⁰ And also the servants of Hiram and the servants of Solomon, who brought in gold from Ophir, brought in algum trees and precious stones.¹¹ And the king fashioned the algum trees into steps for the house of Jehovah, and for the king's house, and lyres and harps for singers. And there was none like these before in the land of Judah.¹² And King Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all her desire that she asked, besides that which she had brought to the king. And she turned and went to her land, she and her servants.

¹³ And the weight of the gold that came to Solomon in one year was six hundred and sixty six talents of gold,¹⁴ besides that from the traders, and that the merchants were bringing in. And all the kings of Arabia, and the rulers of the land, were bringing in gold and silver to Solomon.¹⁵ And King Solomon made two hundred bucklers of beaten gold; he put six hundred shekels of beaten gold on the one buckler;¹⁶ and three hundred shields of beaten gold; he put three hundred shekels of gold on the one shield. And the king put them in the house of the forest of Lebanon.¹⁷ And the king made a great throne of ivory and overlaid it with pure gold;¹⁸ and there were six steps to the throne, and a footstool of gold was fastened to the throne; and hands were on this side and on that, at the place of the sitting; and two lions were standing near the hands;¹⁹ and twelve lions were standing there on the six steps on this side and on that. There was not any such made for any kingdom.²⁰ And all the drinking vessels of King Solomon were gold, and all the vessels of the house of the forest of Lebanon of refined gold. Silver was not counted for anything in the days of Solomon.²¹ For the ships of the king were going to Tarshish with the servants of Hiram. Once in three years the ships came from Tarshish bearing gold, and silver, ivory, and apes, and peacocks.²² And King Solomon increased more than any of the kings of the earth for riches and wisdom.²³ And all the kings of the earth were seeking the face of Solomon, to hear his wisdom that God had put in his heart.²⁴ And they were each bringing his present, vessels of silver and vessels of gold, and garments, weapons, and spices, horses and mules, a rate year by year.²⁵ And Solomon had four thousand stalls for horses and chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen. And he put them in the chariot cities, and with the king in Jerusalem.²⁶ And he ruled over all the kings from the River even to the land of the Philistines, and to the border of Egypt.²⁷ And the king made silver in Jerusalem as the stones. And he made the cedars as the sycamores in the low country for abundance.²⁸ And they brought out horses from Egypt to Solomon, and from all the lands.²⁹ And the rest of the acts of Solomon, the first and the last, are they not written in the words of Nathan the prophet, and in the prophecy of Ahijah the Shilonite, and in the visions of Iddo the seer concerning Jeroboam the son of Nebat?³⁰ And Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel forty years.³¹ And Solomon lay with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of his father David. And his son Rehoboam reigned in his place.